(Clearwisdom.net) On September 15, 2009, Shashi District Court in Jingzhou City, Hubei Province, held a hearing for Mr. Feng Feng and Ms. Deng Tianyu. Personnel who participated in the hearing included public prosecutor Yang Xinhua from the Jingzhou Shashi District Procuratorate, Shashi District Court Judge Wang Bin, two jurors, and certain bailiffs. The family members of the Falun Gong practitioners engaged three lawyers from Beijing to defend the practitioners.
Mr. Feng Feng and Ms. Deng Tianyu were incarcerated at the No. 1 Detention Center in Shashi District for more than six months. During this time, their health deteriorated and they became weak. Mr. Feng's hair turned gray as a result of persecution, his legs are now paralyzed, and he can no longer take care of himself. Ms. Deng lost the sight in her right eye and can barely see our of her left. She has frequent dizzy spells and difficulty standing.
The court session began at 10:00 a.m. and ended at 2:30 p.m.
Three lawyers legally defended the practitioners and proved their legal points with the relevant laws.
Lawyer Jiang pointed out at the beginning of the court session that making Ms. Deng and Mr. Feng wear prison uniforms and handcuffs was illegal. He said that Falun Gong is not an "evil cult," that nowhere do the country's laws state or single out Falun Gong as a cult, and that freedom of belief and freedom to proclaim one's belief are protected by China's constitution and laws. He added that whatever Falun Gong practitioners do, even if they distribute truth clarifying materials and the Nine Commentaries on the Communist Party, they are doing it within the boundaries of their belief to expose and deter the persecution. He said doing those things is within their legal rights. He said that for public prosecutor Yang Xinhua to prosecute the two practitioners "for breaking the law by impeding the law enforcement officers from carrying out their duties" was without legal basis.
Another lawyer commented that the principles of Falun Gong, Truthfulness-Compassion-Forbearance, are an important part of society's spiritual advancement.
The three lawyers entered an innocent plea for their clients. This is the first time that lawyers have done this in Jingzhou City. This has helped to protect the dignity of Falun Gong.
In the end District Court Judge Wang Bin called for an adjournment.
February 25, 2009
